Abstract: An image transformation method, performed by a computer, for determining a transformation between two medical images of an anatomical structure, respectively taken at a first and second point in time, said method comprising the steps of: acquiring first and second image datasets which represent the first and second image, respectively; determining an image-based transformation between the first image and the second image; acquiring an elastic model of the anatomical structure at the first point in time, wherein the elastic model comprises a plurality of nodes and the relationships between the nodes; calculating the displacements of a subset of the nodes in accordance with the image-based transformation; calculating the displacements of the other nodes in accordance with the relationships between the nodes as represented by the elastic model, while keeping the displacements of the nodes in the subset of nodes constant; and calculating the transformation from the displacement vectors which represent the displac

Abstract: The present invention relates to a tracking reference structure for localizing and tracking an object by means of a medical tracking system, said structure comprising: —a first part (1) which forms a support structure for at least one tracking marker (3); and—a second part (2) which is configured to be fixed to said object, wherein a positionally fixed connection between the first part (1) and the second part (2) is established by means of an interface comprising at least one resiliently articulated element (4) on the first part (1) and/or second part (2), which engage(s) with the respective other part (2, 1), and wherein the resiliently articulated element (4) is configured such that its restoring spring force alone is already sufficient to positionally fix the connection.

Abstract: A data processing method of determining a transformation for transforming medical image data into a positional reference system, the method being executed by a computer and comprising the following steps: a) acquiring reference position data comprising reference position information describing a reference position of a medical imaging apparatus in an imaging apparatus reference system; b) acquiring imaging geometry data comprising imaging geometry information describing an imaging geometry of the medical imaging apparatus; c) acquiring actual position data comprising actual position information describing different actual positions of the medical imaging apparatus in an imaging apparatus reference system, wherein the medical imaging apparatus takes the actual positions for acquiring medical image data comprising medical image information describing an image of the anatomical region of the patient's body at each of the actual positions; d) determining, based on the reference position data and the imaging geome

Abstract: A connector for attaching a reference array in a fixed positional relationship with respect to a patient to be covered by a sterile drape in an attachment area, includes a support to be situated below the drape and a clamping element which is to be situated above the drape and can directly or indirectly hold the reference array or a reference array adaptor, wherein the clamping element clamps the support, with the drape caught between the two, by at least two distinct clamps which clamp the support from at least partly opposing directions in such a way that the positional shift in the clamping element as a result of clamping the drape at the clamping position is compensated for, such that its overall positional shift is substantially zero. A method attaching a reference array in a fixed positional relationship relative to a patient above a sterile drape is also provided.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a medical method of managing a cerebrovascular insult, the method comprising the following steps in this order: a) placing a patient on a patient support unit; b) positioning a mobile tomographic imaging system in a predetermined position relative to the patient support unit with the patient placed on the patient support unit; c) imaging at least part of the patient's brain using an imaging unit of the tomographic imaging system, the imaging comprising in particular generating an image describing the functioning of the patient's blood vessel system; d) determining, in dependence on the result of the imaging, whether the patient support unit should be rotated relative to the tomographic imaging system with the patient placed on the patient support unit so that the patient is free of the imaging unit in order to conduct a medical intervention on the patient's blood vessel system, or whether the patient support unit may remain in its position relative to the tomographic imagi

Abstract: A system, in particular for image-guided surgery, comprising: at least two display devices; a position determinator for determining the relative position of the display devices; and an image generator for generating images, which are to be displayed by the display devices, in accordance with the determined relative position.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a medical data processing method for identifying an entity of the nervous system, in particular the brain, of a patient, wherein the method is designed to be executed by a computer and comprises the following steps: a) acquiring target connectivity data comprising target connectivity information about the probability of a target entity being connected to other entities of the nervous system; b) acquiring candidate connectivity data comprising candidate connectivity information about the probability of at least one candidate entity being connected to other entities of the nervous system; and c) determining similarity data for each of the at least one candidate entities on the basis of the candidate connectivity data and the target connectivity data, wherein the similarity data comprise similarity information about the similarity between the candidate entity and the target entity.

Abstract: The invention relates to a medical data processing method for determining a vulnerability field of a brain of a patient, the steps of the method being constituted to be executed by a computer and comprising: a) acquiring a nerve-indicating dataset comprising information about the brain of the patient suitable for identifying neural fibers in the brain of the patient; b) determining nodes within the brain preferably being neuron-rich grey matter parts of the brain; c) determining the axonal linkage of the nodes based on the nerve-indicating dataset to obtain edges connecting the nodes, the nodes and edges constituting a connectivity graph; d) determining a weight for each of the edges depending on centrality graph theoretical statistical measure of the respective edge in the connectivity graph; e) determining, for each of the edges, which voxels in a dataset of the brain of the patient belong to the edges or are passed by the edges and assigning or adding the determined weight of the respective edges to all of

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for determining the position of an object moving within a body, wherein the body is connected to markers, a movement signal is determined based on the measured movement of the markers, images are taken from the object using a camera or detector, wherein the camera or detector is moved with respect to the object, it is determined from which direction or range of angles or segment the most images corresponding to a predefined cycle of the movement signal are taken, and using at least some or all of the images of the segment containing the most images for a specified movement cycle, an image of the object is reconstructed.

Abstract: The invention relates to a surgical instrument comprising a handle portion or mounting portion and a functional portion and/or tip, wherein a display device is provided on the instrument and includes or enables displays which serve to assist in image-guided and/or navigation-assisted surgery. It also relates to a method for navigating a surgical instrument, wherein its position is determined and tracked by means of a medical tracking system and the position data is processed within the framework of medical navigation by means of a medical navigation system, wherein displays for navigation assistance and/or for assisting in image-guided surgery are provided on the instrument or on an element which is positionally assigned to the instrument or fastened to the instrument.

Abstract: The invention is directed to a data processing method of displaying a radiation dose distribution in tissue of a patient and a corresponding program and computer running the program, the steps of the method being executed by a computer and comprising: a) acquiring medical image data comprising medical image information describing an anatomical body part; b) acquiring, based on the medical image data, irradiation eligibility data comprising irradiation eligibility information describing an eligibility class to which the anatomical body part belongs, the eligibility class describing the eligibility of the anatomical body part for irradiation with treatment radiation; c) acquiring dose distribution data comprising dose distribution information describing a radiation dose distribution in the anatomical body part; d) displaying, on a display device, the dose distribution information in the medical image information based on the irradiation eligibility data and based on using a color range which represents the d

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for planning the positioning of a ball joint prosthesis, in particular a hip joint prosthesis, wherein the prosthesis includes a stem and a cup and the method comprises the following steps: —determining the geometric shape of the joint socket, in particular the acetabulum, and the geometric shape of the cup which is to be placed; —defining target areas where the cup has to abut the bony structure of the joint socket, in particular the acetabulum, in order for the cup to be sufficiently fixed; —determining actual areas of the cup which will abut the bony structure of the joint socket, in particular the acetabulum, when the cup is placed; —defining a requirement for the position and/or orientation of the cup on the basis of the position and/or size of the target areas and/or actual areas.

Abstract: The invention relates to a connector (1) for attaching a reference array (72) in a fixed positional relationship with respect to a patient, wherein the patient is to be covered by a sterile drape in the attachment area, the connector (1) comprising: a support (12) which is to be situated below the drape (30); and a clamping element (14) which is to be situated above the drape and can directly or indirectly hold the reference array (72) or a reference array adaptor, wherein the clamping element (14) clamps the support (12), with the drape (30) caught between the two, by means of at least two distinct clamps (16) which clamp the support (12) from at least partly opposing directions in such a way that the positional shift in the clamping element (14) as a result of clamping the drape (30) at the clamping position is compensated for, such that its overall positional shift is substantially zero.

Abstract: A matching transformation is determined for matching a patient image set of images of an anatomical body structure of a patient with an atlas image set of images of a general anatomical structure including anatomical atlas elements. Atlas spatial information containing spatial information on the general anatomical structure, and element representation information are obtained. The element representation information describes representation data sets which contain information on representations of the plurality of atlas elements in the atlas images to be determined are obtained, and also describes a determination rule for determining respective representation data sets for respective atlas elements in accordance with different respective parameter sets. Patient data is acquired by acquiring the patient image set and the parameter sets which are respectively associated with the images of the patient image set.

Abstract: A method for planning an infusion into hepatic tissue into a patient includes: obtaining anatomical and/or physiological patient data of the patient's liver or a region of the liver; determining at least one patient parameter from the patient data; planning the infusion using the anatomical patient data, physiological patient data, and/or at least one patient parameter, wherein planning includes determining how an administered substance is distributed in the tissue and/or how the administered substance influences physiological properties of the tissue; and determining a distribution and/or effectiveness of a therapeutic agent administered with the substance or after the substance.

Abstract: The invention relates to a medical data processing method of segmenting image features in medical images generated with different imaging modalities, wherein the image features represent a corresponding anatomical structure in each of the medical images, the method being constituted to be executed by a computer and comprising the following steps: a) acquiring (SI) first modality medical image data describing a first modality medical image containing a first modality image representation of the anatomical structure; b) acquiring (SI) second modality medical image data describing a second modality medical image containing a second modality image representation of the anatomical structure; c) determining, based on the first modality medical image data and the second modality medical image data, modality transformation data describing a mapping transformation between the image information in the first modality image data and the image information in the second modality image data; d) acquiring color value data de

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for correcting MRI image distortion, in which a distortion correction procedure is carried out on an acquired MRI image data set (1) of a body region by graphical data processing, characterized in that: —after the MRI image data set (1) has been acquired, its distortion is determined by carrying out an image registration process for registering the acquired MRI image data set (1) to a previously available, less distorted or undistorted image data set (2) of substantially the same body region; —a transformation is determined from the image registration process; and —by applying the transformation to the MRI image data set (1), its distortion is corrected.

Abstract: The invention relates to an image guided surgery system comprising —a surgical instrument (14), —a tracking system for locating and tracking an object (20) in a surgical environment, the tracking system including a tracking sensor system, in particular a tracking camera system (16); and —a medical navigation system (15) processing tracking data from the tracking system and image data of the object (20), and outputting image data and navigational assistance on a display (13). The instrument (14), the tracking system including the sensor system (16) and the medical navigation system including the display are integrated in one single portable unit (10), or the instrument (14) and the medical navigation system including the display are integrated in one single portable unit (10), while at least the sensor system (34) of the tracking system is arranged at a location near a region of interest determined by the object (20) and the field of surgery.

Abstract: A data processing method for planning a medical treatment comprising following steps performed by a computer: acquiring reference patient data describing medical information on at least one reference patient including information on progression of the medical constitution of the at least one reference patient; acquiring current patient data describing medical information on a current patient; determining information on the progression of the medical constitution of the current patient based on the reference patient data and the current patient data.

Abstract: A data processing method for determining the relative orientation of an object coordinate system of an anatomical object in a global co-ordinate system, comprising the steps of: acquiring a reference direction dataset representing a first reference direction of a line between a first anatomical landmark of a reference object and a second anatomical landmark of the reference object, and a second reference direction of a line between a third anatomical landmark of the reference object and a fourth anatomical landmark of the reference object, wherein the first and second reference directions are given in a reference coordinate system and the reference object corresponds to the anatomical object; acquiring an object direction dataset representing a first object direction of a line between the first anatomical landmark of the anatomical object and the second anatomical landmark of the anatomical object, and a second object direction of a line between the third anatomical landmark of the anatomical object and the f